Coal-feeding device



(No Model.)

W. B. CHISHOLM & J. WALKER.

GOAL FEEDING DEVICE.

7 III m w w m 4 {Y E i l WITNESSES WVILSON B. OHISHOLM AND JOHN WALKER, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO.

COAL-FEEDlNG DEVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 316,7626, dated April 28, 1885.

Application liled October 3, 1884. (N0 model.) i

T 0 all whom it mag concern.- Be it known that we, WILs N B. OHIsHoLM and JOHN WALKER, of Cleveland, in the county of Ouyahoga and State of Ohio, have in vented certain new and useful Improvements in Goal-Feeding Devices and Processes; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it pertains to make and use the same.

Our invention relates to a process or method of feeding coal to a furnace by means of steam or air blast and to mechanism for carrying out the process, the object being to provide ahopper in front of the furnace for the reception of coal, with a narrow opening into the furnace and a pipe or suitable chamber at the bottom of the hopper to receive steam or air under pressure, and with suitable eduction-openings or jet-orifices leading to the furnace, and the parts so arranged that, by means of a steam or air blast, the coal is blown from the hopper into the furnace.

A further object is to provide a swinging deflecting-plate, located in front of the jetorifices, to aid in distributing the coal evenly over the grate-bars.

A further object is to arrange the steam-pipe so that it may be turned to give the proper elevation to the jet-orifices.

A further object is to provide a valve that is operated by turning the steam-pipe to the end that the blast may be applied with varying force.

A further object is to so arrange the mechanism that the pipe, valve, and deflecting-plate may be operated simultaneously by a lever.

With these objects in view our invention consists in the process and in the construction and combination of mechanism for carrying out the process, that will be hereinafter described, and pointed out in the claims.

ism. I Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section through the blast-tubes and a transverse section 1 through the valve and device for coupling the tubes. Fig. 3 is an elevation of the disks forming the valve and valveseat. Fig. 41s a 5 is a transverse vertical section through the hopper and deflecting-plate, showing a blastchamber cast in the hopper instead of the blast-tube. Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of the deflecting-plate.

ash-pit door, arranged in. the usual a narrow opening, I), is had, leading from the hopperinto the furnace and extending usually across the entire furnace. I i

F is the blast tube,located, as shown, inside of the hopper at the lower front corner there .of. This tube passes through both ends of the hopper with an easy fit, so that the tube can be revolved in either direction. the tube is plugged or closed,'and the other end is connected with the tube G in a manner hereinafter shown. The tube F is provided with a series of openings or jet-orifices, f, arranged in line along one side of the tube inside of the hopper. These openings are usually about one-half inch in diameter, more or less, but may be made larger or smaller,according to the distance that the coal is to be thrown, and are usually from one to two inches apart. Small short tubes may be inserted in the orifices, forming discharging-nozzles for the blast; but if the tube F is of ordinary thickness these will not be needed. In place of round holes, a succession of narrow slits or one continuous narrow slit may be used, if preferred.

The tube F is provided with thehand-lever One end of- F, by means of which the tube may be partially rotated in either direction.

His a deflecting-plate secured to the rod k, that serves as a fulcrum. cated on the furnace side of the plate B and hangs down part way across the opening I) and in front of the orifices f. This plate is partially broken away in Fig. l to show the tube F. The rod h is pivoted in the side walls, and may be further supported by hinges along the plate B. One end of the rod extends through the side wall of the furnace and has attached the hand-lever h,that is preferablylocated so that it moves in about the same plane as the lever The plate H is 10- Y Thevalvemechanism (shown in Figs. 2 and I 3) is as follows: The disk I is provided with the openings '6, and is integral with the part I, that screws onto the end of the pipe F. The disk J is provided with the openings j, and is integral with the part J, that screws onto the pipe G. The part I fits into the enlarged end of the part J, and the latter is provided with a gland, J that screws onto the part J and has an inside flange, J that abuts against the outer end of the part I and holds the two disks in contact. The faces of these disks are grooved together, so that when the openings 1' and j mismatch there is a tight joint formed. The disk I on the periphery is cut away, leaving shoulders i, that engage the pins j, projecting from the face of the disk J and form stops, and the arrangement of parts is such that when the pipe F is turned up until the handle F is at about the position shown in Fig. 1 the ports in the disks are closed, and when the lever is depressed as far as the stops will admit the said ports are wide open; also, the arrangement of parts is such that when the lever F is elevated -and the ports closed the openings f are about horizontal and the deflecting-plate H hangs nearly vertical and I just in front of the openings f.

This apparatus is only designed to operate with coal-dust and the smaller sizes of coal.

The hopper is kept supplied withfine coal, which will of course cover the pipe F, and a quantity will lie along the furnace side of the pipe. If the pipe G is connected with the boiler, it will always be filled with steam at about boiler-pressure. If the lever F is depressed a trifle,so as to slightly open the ports in the disks I and J ,there will be only aslight pressure of steamin the pipe F, and this passing through the orifices f,that are nearly in a' horizontal position and with the deflectingplate nearly vertical and just in front of the jet-orifices,will move the coal but a short dis toward the furnace, all of which would cause the coal to be thrown fartherinto the furnace.

. When the lever is depressed to the end of its stroke,the ports are brought to a full opening and a full head of steam is admitted,and at the same time the j et-orifices are elevated to about an angle of forty-five degrees, more or less. Un-

. der these conditions and without the deflectingplate, the coal would be thrown a much greater distance than is required; but the deflectingplate, meantime, by means of the connectingrod h, is brought to the required position, so

that thecoal is thrown against ity and is deflected downward. and deposited at the back end of the grates' In operating the device the hopper is kept constantly supplied with coal, so that no cold air is admitted into the furnace through the opening 6. When the furnace needs replenishing, if only a small amount of coal is to be added, the operator gives the lever F a quick movement down and back. If a larger quantity of coal is required, the movements are somewhat slower. In either case, the coal will be evenly distributed on the fire, and, in fact, more evenly than an expert stoker would be likely to distribute the coal with a shovel.

A small and suitably-located orifice through the plate B will enable the operator to inspect the fire and .to observe the amountand distribution of coal discharged into the furnace by each movement of the lever F, so that, with a little practice, the operator can distribute the coal evenly and in such quantities as re- .quired.

To gain the best results the coal should be supplied oftenand in small quantities.

The pipe G, on its passage from the boiler to its connection with the pipe F, should pass through the smoke-box or some part of the furnace or attachments where the steam will be superheated before it is used to feed the coal, as aforesaid.

, In case air is used in place of steam, the air also should be heated, preferably in the same manner.

In place of the oscillating pipe, a chamber, M, might be cast in the hopper and provided with j et-orifices, the same as already described in the pipe F, and by aid of the deflectingplate H, and by means, also, of a varying pressure of steam or air from the blast, fair results may be had. In such case, any valve that could be quickly operated, and located in the pipe leading to the chamber M, would accomplish the object; but the device would not be IIO so convenient as the rotating blast-pipe and to a furnace by an air or steam blast admitted through suitable jet-orifices, in contact with the coal, and elevating or depressing the jetorifices to give greater or less range to coal projected by the blast, substantially as set forth.

2. In an apparatus for feeding coal to a fur nace by an air or steam blast, the pipe F, provided with suitable jet-orifices and a handlever, F, and so arranged that the pipe may be turned to elevate or depress the j et-orifices, substantially as set forth.

3. In an apparatus for automatically feeding coal to a furnace, the'combination, with a hopper arranged transversely to thefurnace and communicating therewith through its entire length, and a perforated blast-pipe arranged longitudinally within the hopper and in the same plane with the opening between the furnace and hopper, of a deflecting-plate located within the furnace and adapted to be adjusted to any desired angle to deflect the coal as required, substantially as set forth.

4. The combination of the pipe and the deflecting-plate H, and provided with suitable connecting mechanism, by means of which the tube and plate may be turned simultane: ously in the same direction, substantially as set forth.

5. In a device for automatically feeding coal to a furnace, the combination, with a hopper secured to a furnace and communicating there with, the perforated pipe F, located within the hopper and provided at one end with a disk, I, having the ports i and a handle secured to day of July, 1884.

WILSON B. GHISHOLM. JOHN WALKER.

Witnesses:

CHAS. H. DORER, ALBERT E. LYNCH. 

